THE ATOMIUM – BRUSSELS
1958
TYPE: Monument/ Mixed Use
LOCATION: Brussels, Belgium
YEAR: 1958
SIZE: 102 m height
ARCHITECTS: Les Architectes Polak
CLIENT: Government of Belgium
STATUS: Completed
Built for the 1958 Brussels World Fair (Expo ’58), this Belgian Pavilion 103-metre high structure represents a molecule of iron, magnified 165 billion times called THE ATOMIUM.
Nine 18-metre diameter steel spheres are linked by tubes, which enclose escalators up to 35 meters long. Windows in the top sphere offer a panoramic view of Brussels. Some spheres house 1950s exhibitions. The Atomium had such a huge success that even after the exhibition it was left erected in Brussels, which represents Belgium history and is now one of the famous tourist sites.